Week 8

Week 8 started out great but came crashing down on my long run on Saturday. I am sitting here on Sunday night with a runny nose and sore throat which I atttribute to a weakened immune system after a terrible run yesterday. It did not take long to feel aweful yesterday. We started earlier which made for a very dark start. Our first water stop was after 4.2 miles which was good, but I never really could get into a groove after that break. I had bouts of dehydration, dizziness,  naesua, and mental and physical fatigue. Towards the end I ran into Nancy and after getting some advice decided that I need to change the plan a little bit. I still have 19 weeks to go and may be pushing too far right now. I did over 30 miles this week (that is so crazy to me and even though it was a bad long run, that number is so exciting) with my highest being 13. Monday was 6 great miles without any stopping on the treadmill. Finishing that was a great feeling. Wednesday was about 3.5 including 400 and 800 repeats. Thursday was 8 miles and Saturday was 13. I think the combo of doing speed work on Wednesday and then 8 on Thursday left my body tired. I also think that I need to drink tons more water on Fridays to hydrate for the next day.

So, I think I will be switching to Hal Higdon's plan which actually will not start til next week and will give me 18 weeks to train. The difference in the plan is that it gives you a mileage to run instead of minutes. While on the other plan I was having a hard time knowing how fast or far I should run with each day of training which I think pushed me too hard this past week and lead to exhaustion. 

Week 7

So because the weeks are starting to run together, I thought that I should keep better track of what I have been doing and that means to update more often before this mind of mine forgets what has been going on. 
Sunday: rest, Monday: 4 uniterrupted miles on the treadmill along with warm-up and cool-down time, Tuesday: took an attempt at Military Madness. I survived the class, but was feeling the affects days later. Wednesday: 3+ miles with 4 1/4 mile repeats and some drills, Thursday: 6 miles on the treadmill though I did get interrupted by the nursery and had to change Makayla right in the middle, Friday: rest, Saturday: just under 12 miles in 2:27 and really enjoyed it. My legs were very tired by the end, but I felt better than the last time I ran 12 miles so I was happy. I did not get enough sleep the night before either because of a youth activity that we went to. For breakfast I had cereal which is different than my normal waffle but I don't think that made a difference at all. Along the way I finished one bottle with electrolytes in it and had one gu packet. I meant to have two but forgot to take the second one. I am still struggling with my diet during the week and keep telling myself that I need to get back on track so let's see how I can do this week.

Weeks 5 and 6

Weeks  5 and 6 have come and gone and here's how they went:  Sunday: rest, Monday: 4+ miles, Tuesday: swimming, Wednesday: 4+ miles including speed work, Thursday: 4 1/2 + miles, Friday: rest, Saturday: between 12 and 13 grueling miles in which my gps stopped tracking me. I tried creatine again and felt like my stomach was upset again. Total mileage: 24 1/2+ miles

Week 6 was somewhat better. I always feel great at the beginning of the week and can push myself while on the treadmill and even outside. I have made myself go longer and longer before stopping for water and try to make it through many of my workouts without stopping at all. That is a major mental accomplishment for me for I feel that stopping is not always my body telling me to, but my mind thinking that I MUST take a break.

Sunday: rest, Monday: 4+ miles, Tuesday: Pilates, Wednesday: 4+ miles with speedwork (pyrmaid on the treadmill), Thursday: 4+ miles, Friday: rest, Saturday: 8+ miles (yeah for a shorter, long run!!). I skipped the creatine, and used GU with caffine in it. It was a great run and I had enough energy left at the end to sprint at the end! Days like these get me excited again. Also, by the end of the day Saturday I am ready to crash but I am finally surviving without a nap during the day. Seems silly, but I feel good about that too. I am working hard but my body seems to be adjusting to the extra time spent out on the trail and on the treadmill. Total weekly mileage: 20+ (an easier week that will only lead to a harder one!!)

Weeks 3 and 4

The weeks are going by and getting a little easier as well as longer. Week 3 went like this: Sunday: rest (of course), Monday: 3+ miles Tuesday: 30 minutes of elliptical, Wenesday: 4 + miles of speed work, Thursday:  4+ miles, Friday: rest, Saturday: 10 miles for a total of 21 miles for the week. It was a good week all in all with a great long run on Saturday. I tried Creatine before my long run and it kept me full and think it may have helped my energy levels but I will still be testing it to see if it has a good effect on my body. During my long run I did not ever feel like I needed a Gu so water was it for me.

Week 4 was good but not as good as far as how I felt. I put a lot of mileage in but my long run was a little different. Monday: 4+ miles, Tuesday: swimming, Wednesday: 4+ miles with speed work, Thursday: 4+ miles, Friday: rest, Saturday: 11 miles. This run felt good at the beginning but towards the end (maybe mile 9 or so) I felt like I was getting dehydrated. Goosebumps on my arms and a tad bit of a headache were clues towards that but I also took a different brand of Creatine and wonder if that had any negative affects. By the time I got back to the gym I had walked a bit and had a stomach ache but felt better a little while later. I had one Gu along the way, but my plan for this week is to remove the Creatine and have more electrolytes and see what happens. Total mileage for the week was 23 miles and climbing!!

At the end of the first month I am happy with my training so far. I feel stronger already but know that I have a long way to go. Only 5 months left to go til the big day!

Weeks one and two

I am into week 3 of my marathon training already. I am taking 6 months to train which is a lot, but I could not wait to start since I decided over 4 months ago to do this thing. I also started my nutrition plan which is just more of a healthy eating diet allowing myself Saturday, after my long run as my "cheat" day. So far, I have done o.k. I have had a few bites here and there of things I am not suppose to eat during the week, but I am doing far better than I was. I think that soon I am going to need to eat A LOT more because I am hungry all the time right now.

So here's how week one went; Monday rest, Tuesday Military Madness, Wednesday run with the group including 4 400 meter repeats and about 4 miles total, Thursday 3 mile light run, Friday rest, and Saturday 8 miles. Total mileage = about 15 miles.

Week two was a little more work; Monday about 3 miles, Tuesday 30 minutes on the elliptical, Wednesday run with the group including a one miler and about 3 total miles (this was rough though 3 miles does not seem like a lot. Unfortunately my one mile at full speed was a minute longer than my best at 9:05. I think the heat affected me a lot, but will try it again soon to try to improve that dramatically). Thursday I attempted to do half hour of spin and then a 35 minute run. I finished it but think that I will have to drop the spinning on running days until I am adjusted to the extra running. Friday was a rest day and Saturday was a run of about 8 miles or so. Sometimes we still have a hard time figuring out exactly what mileage we have run on the trail but since the training guide I am relying on is done by time anyway it does not matter too much. later I will be able to look back on how many miles I have done in the amount of time given and see the improvements I have made. So the total for the week was about 17 miles!!

Although it has only been 2 complete weeks so far, I have already learned a few things!! I need to worry about myself only and not the other runners along the way. It's so easy to compare yourself to others and make yourself think that you are not doing a good job, but the focus must only be on improving what I have done and not others. Then I also have to remember that there will be days that are not so great, but that only leaves room for getting better!!

So here is the conversation that I have with myself (in my head of course): Me: "that was such a bad run!" Me: "Yeah but think of where you used to be!"  Me: But I was way in the back of other runners who I don't even think have been running as long as I have." Me: "Do you remember in high school when you HATED to run even during b-ball practice. You would have never gone out and run just for fun." Me: That's true and seriously 8 miles!! I never would have imagined even a year ago that I would be running 8+ miles at one time." I guess I am doing o.k. and I have plenty of time to be ready for this thing. Next run will be better."

Sounds crazy I know, but sometimes you can be your best motivator. We'll see how this week goes. Plan on a post about once a week to update what I have done for that week. Sorry if you get bored with that but it's more for me than anything. I will hopefully be able to look back in three months and see what areas I have been able to improve on and maybe even where I need to make some changes.

The journey has begun!

A little motivation please!!!

Today is Wednesday. That means that I spent my morning at the gym with our running coach and group doing a "Wicked Wenesday" workout. Although you would think that these would be getting easier by now, they are still grueling and as the heat heats up here in sunny Florida, my body wants to give up sooner.

Today was a tempo run; warm-up, 5 minutes at race pace, cool-down, and do it again.  We started at 8, but right at the beginning of Summer here, you sweat when walking from your car to the door of the gym! I will spare you the details, but let's just say, my body is arguing with my brain about being outside at all in that heat. It makes me think that is time for a little motivation.

It can be hard to motivate yourself. That's why I don't like to run by myself, but hey, it happens. Motivation can come in many forms, rewards, advice from friends, or "yelling" from your coach. And sometimes it's as easy as reading some quotes from other runners. Here are some I love. They make me want to go run right now (of course I am sitting in the air conditioning right now with the curtains closed. I might change my mind if I go open the door =)

Please share with me if you have another favorite motivational quote. I'd love to hear it.


"You have to wonder at times what you're doing out there. Over the years, I've given myself a thousand reasons to keep running, but it always comes back to where it started. It comes down to self-satisfaction and a sense of achievement."
- Steve Prefontaine

"Racing teaches us to challenge ourselves. It teaches us to push beyond where we thought we could go. It helps us to find out what we are made of. This is what we do. This is what it's all about."
-PattiSue Plumer, U.S. Olympian

"Don't bother just to be better than your contemporaries or predecessors. Try to be better than yourself."
-William Faulkner


"If you run, you are a runner. It doesn't matter how fast or how far. It doesn't matter if today is your first day or if you've been running for twenty years. There is no test to pass, no license to earn, no membership card to get. You just run."
--John Bingham


It hurts up to a point and then it doesn't get any worse."
- Ann Trason


"Runners just do it - they run for the finish line even if someone else has reached it first." - Author Unknown

  "The trouble with jogging is that by the time you realize you're not in shape for it, it's too far to walk back."
-Franklin P. Jones


To be number one, you have to train like you're number two. Maurice Greene

If I am still standing at the end of the race, hit me with a board and knock me down, because that means I didn’t run hard enough Steve Jones


Champions do not become champions when they win the event, but in the hours, weeks, months and years they spend preparing for it. The victorious performance itself is merely the demonstration of their championship character.
T. Alan Armstrong


You have a choice. You can throw in the towel, or you can use it to wipe the sweat off of your face.
Gatorade ad

Success is to be measured not so much by the position that one has reached in life as by the obstacles which he has overcome while trying to succeed.
Booker T. Washington

Gordie Howe
You find that you have peace of mind and can enjoy yourself, get more sleep, rest when you know that it was a one hundred percent effort that you gave - win or lose.

Accept challenges, so that you may feel the exhilaration of victory.
       -George S. Patton

I am not a jogger!

I was reading through an old Runner's World magazine the other night and came across an article by John Bingham about why he calls himself a runner. He mentioned an ad that ran in the magazine months before that tried to distinguish between those who are runners and those who are joggers. Many people were offended by it. I guess technically there is a difference, but he, like many of us, calls himself a "runner" for his own reasons. Here are the ones he listed. I agree with so many of them!

I am a runner because my runs have names. I do tempo runs and threshold runs and fartlek runs. I do long, slow runs and track workouts. My runs are defined, even if my abs are not.

I am a runner because my shoes are training equipment, not a fashion statement. The best shoe for me is the one that makes me a better runner. I choose the shoe that goes with my running mechanics, not my running outfit.

I am a runner because I don't have running outfits. I have technical shirts and shorts and socks. I have apparel that enhances the experience of running by allowing me to run comfortably. I can say "Coolmax" and "Gore-Tex" in the same sentence and know which does what.

I am a runner because I know what effort feels like, and I embrace it. I know when I'm pushing the limits of my comfort and why I'm doing it. I know that heavy breathing and an accelerated heart rate-things I once avoided-are necessary if I want to be a better runner.

I am a runner because I value and respect my body. It will whisper to me when I've done too much. And if I choose to listen to that whisper, my body won't have to scream in pain later on.

I am a runner because I am willing to lay it all on the line. I know that every finish line has the potential to lift my spirits to new highs or devastate me, yet I line up anyway.

I am a runner because I know that despite my best efforts, I will always want more from myself. I will always want to know my limits so that I can exceed them.

I am a runner because I run. Not because I run fast. Not because I run far.

I am a runner because I say I am. And no one can tell me I'm not.

Taken from Runner's World magazine November 2007.